Harvesters such as windrowers, tractors, forage harvesters, and mowers (e.g., self-propelled and pull-behind) generally include a header operable to cut crops. Typical construction for such harvesters includes a housing with a cutterbar having multiple rotatable blades for cutting crop. Detection of streaks in crop cutting can be visually detected from a cab of the harvester after the harvester has passed a great distance due to the line of sight from the cab. Adjustment of the cutterbar can therefore only be performed after the harvester has passed over a portion of the field, resulting in uneven crop cutting.
For optimum crop cutting operation, traditional harvesters can monitor the loads exerted on the cutterbar or on the individual blade modules with optical sensors. Reference is made, for example, to U.S. Pat. Nos. 8,490,371; 9,241,440; and 8,931,245, that illustrate such harvesters, the disclosures of which are incorporated herein by reference in their entireties. However, such sensors can malfunction or can be contaminated with dust during operation, resulting in inaccurate signal transmission to the controller.